ABACUS: Abacus Auctions Pty Ltd, a company incorporated in the State of Victoria, is the Auctioneer. Abacus is a member of the Australasian Philatelic Traders Association (APTA) and adheres to the APTA Code of Ethics..

DESCRIPTIONS: Abacus endeavours to describe lots fully and accurately. The Description of a lot comprises the Symbols and Grading System (as set out on the opposite page), the written description, any illustration of the lot or part of the lot, and any amendments thereto published in Saleroom Notices and/or on the Abacus website.

ESTIMATES & RESERVES: The Estimate is in Australian Dollars. The Reserve is set at 75% of the Estimate (rounded to the nearest bidding step) unless otherwise indicated in the Description. Bids below the Reserve will not be accepted. Where “Offer” appears instead of an Estimate, there is no Reserve and the Starting Price is at the Auctioneer’s discretion if there are no bids.

BIDDING: Bids may be placed by mail, phone, email or through the Abacus website before the auction up until such time as notified (Absentee Bids), or in person, by phone (upon least 24 hours notice; see website for special conditions) or through an Agent during the auction (Room Bids). All Agents must advise Abacus of the person(s) for whom bids are being placed or else the Agent will be personally liable as the Buyer. Abacus has absolute discretion to refuse to accept Bids for any reason whatsoever.

STARTING PRICES & HAMMER PRICES: The Starting Price of a lot will be one Bid Step over the second-highest Absentee Bid, or if no such bids have been received, the Reserve. Absentee Bids are executed only up to the amount required to purchase a lot at one Bid Step above the second-highest Absentee Bid or Room Bid. In the event that tied Absentee Bids are the highest bids, a lot shall be sold at the tied amount to the earliest bid received (as determined by the Auctioneer). The Hammer Price is the price at which a lot is sold to the Buyer. Lots marked "T" attract GST on the Hammer Price when sold to Australian-resident Buyers only.

BID STEPS: Abacus uses the following Bid Steps:

Up to $50

$2 rises

$500 - $750

$25 rises

$5,000 - $10,000

$250 rises

$50-$150

$5 rises

$750 - $1,500

$50 rises

$10,000 - $15,000

$500 rises

$150 - $300

$10 rises

$1,500 - $3,000

$100 rises

$15,000 - $30,000

$1,000 rises

$300 - $500

$20 rises

$3,000 - $5,000

$200 rises

over $30,000

5% approx

Abacus reserves the right to raise or lower non-conforming Absentee Bids depending on the bidder's apparent intention.

BUYER: The Buyer is the person to whom a lot is sold by Abacus, either as the highest bidder at auction or the earlier bidder in the case of tied bids, or upon acceptance of a post-auction offer, or by any other means. In the event of a dispute, Abacus shall have absolute discretion in deciding who is the Buyer. Legal title to a lot does not pass to the Buyer until full Payment is received.

BUYER'S PREMIUM: Abacus charges a Buyer’s Premium of 19.8% which is added to the Hammer Price of each lot sold.

PAYMENT: Payment of the Hammer Price, the Buyer’s Premium, shipping & insurance charges (together the Invoice Total) for all lots sold to the Buyer are due and payable to Abacus immediately upon sale (Room Bids) or upon receipt of invoice (Absentee Bids). Payment must be made in Australian Dollars unless otherwise agreed by Abacus (please enquire for details).
If the Buyer does not make Payment of the Invoice Total in full within 30 days from the due date of the invoice, Abacus may at its absolute discretion exercise the following rights (or any one or more of them) to -
1) add an accounting fee of $10 plus 2% interest per month (or part thereof) to the Invoice Total;
2) apply any monies due at any time from Abacus to the Buyer in Payment of all or part of the Invoice Total;
3) terminate the sale, retain any monies paid, re-offer the lot(s), and recover any shortfall plus costs from the Buyer; or
4) take legal action against the Buyer for breach of contact.

RETURN OF LOTS: Except in the case of an "Extension" and subject to the further restrictions below, a lot may be returned only if there is an error in the Description and the Buyer has informed Abacus of their intention to return the lot within 30 days after the auction (regardless of whether or not the Buyer has taken possession of the lot by this time). Further, a lot may not be returned -
1) unless the lot and all items within it are in the same condition as sold, and have not been immersed in water or other fluid, nor treated by any process, nor marked in any way by any expertising body or others;
2) if the lot has been inspected by the Buyer or by the Buyer's Agent;
3) if the lot is illustrated in the catalogue or on the website, or an illustration has been supplied to the Buyer or to the Buyer's Agent, and the reason relied on for return is apparent from the illustration; or
4) if the lot is offered "as is" or expressed to be a "range", "group", "selection", "array", "collection", "accumulation", or similar wording, or contains more than 10 items (except a set of stamps).

CERTIFICATES OF AUTHENTICITY & EXTENSIONS: The Buyer may request that the sale of a lot be made conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory Certificate of Authenticity with the sale to be on “Extension”. Such a request must be made in writing prior to the sale of the lot, and Abacus shall have absolute discretion whether to grant the request and to which expert or expert committee it shall submit the lot for a Certificate. An Extension request will generally not be granted if the lot is offered with a recent Certificate or if the stamp(s) has/have perforated initials (perfins). Where an Extension request is granted, the Buyer must make full Payment for the lot under Clause 9 and bear all costs of obtaining the Certificate. If the Certificate is unsatisfactory, the Buyer is entitled to Return the lot for a full refund including Certificate costs. A Certificate shall only be considered unsatisfactory if it states that a lot is materially different from its Description. Where a lot is described as defective or not genuine in any respect, a Certificate is not unsatisfactory merely because it mentions any further shortcomings not listed in the Description. Where the expert or expert committee is unable to render an opinion, this does not constitute an unsatisfactory Certificate.

GOVERNING LAW: The Terms of Sale shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of Victoria.

ACCEPTANCE: Placing a Bid by any method constitutes acknowledgment and acceptance of these Terms of Sale.